Film Reviews

The Rolling Stones

From The Vault: L.A. Forum (Eagle Rock)

Hard to believe anyone could hold their dignity in ’75, but there’s Richards holding his own vs. an especially clownish Jagger, while Ron Wood bops in a red jump suit and Wyman, always the Stones‘ fifth wheel, stands off to the side wearing chaps.

Ahh, but it’s only rock ‘n’ roll, as the song goes. Having seen the show earlier in 1975 at Madison Square Garden (when Clapton slashed out “Sympathy” with a steel drum band circling the lotus stage), this DVD shows how this tour was: the first real hint of spectacle arena rock, as Wood enters the pantheon and the band reclaims “Sympathy” from the death throes of Altamont. Billy Preston brings on the funk and the ‘fro, while tireless percussionist Ollie Brown gets more camera time than Bill Wyman. When the Stones hit the pocket, they hit it hard. “All Down The Line,” “Star Star,” “Tumbling Dice,” “Brown Sugar,” “Rip This Joint,” “Street Fighting Man,” “It’s Only Rock ‘n Roll,” and of course, “Sympathy For the Devil.” It’s all here.

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[…] birthdays in the sixty plus range sometimes had a tough time telling who was who: Them or the Stones. Then you got to listening to Van’s big-lunged growl and Belfast drawl playing like a golden […]